Broken Homes

Broken Homes is the fourth book in Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London series.  I may not have enjoyed the last two books, Moon Over Soho and Whispers Underground, as much as the first, but I wasn't ready to give up on Peter Gant just yet.

A mutilated body in Crawley.  Another killer on the loose.  The prime suspect is one Robert Weil; an associate of the twisted magician known as the Faceless Man?  Or just a common or garden serial killer?

Before PC Peter Grant can get his head round the case a town planner going under a tube train and a stolen grimoire are adding to his case load.

So far so London.

But then Peter gets word of something very odd happening in Elephant and Castle, on a housing estate designed by a nutter, built by charlatans and inhabited by the truly desperate.

Is there a connection?

And if there is, why oh why did it have to be South of the River?
 
I was disappointed to find that the first half of Broken Homes was a convoluted mess. Complicated and jumbled, there were so many plot elements, most dropped within a blink of an eye, that I had a hard time keeping track of what was going on.  I was losing interest up until Peter and Leslie moved into an apartment on a housing estate.  Finally the case (or cases?  I lost track) became a lot more interesting and coherent.  This was the turning point for the whole book, and suddenly I couldn't put Broken Homes down.  I think that Aaronovitch has a reverse Steven Moffat writing style, in that he's not very good at setting a story up, but boy can he finish one (Moffat's intro of a two-part Doctor Who episode are mostly better than the conclusion).  I would have been in for a shock if only I hadn't got bored in the beginning and read the last page...With all the possibilities that have been set in motion, I am actually looking forward to the next instalment.

I also have to point out that, as always, Aaronovitch's knowledge of the history of London oozes through his prose; no chapter is left without a historical fact.  I just wish that he would be more forthcoming with the history of his characters.  Admittedly Broken Homes does reveal a few pieces of info here and there, but I'm greedy.  Can I have some more please?

If you've enjoyed the series so far, then you're going to love Broken Homes.  However, if like me, you've not been impressed with the last couple of books, try and stick with this latest Peter Gant adventure until the end, I promise that those last few chapters are worth it.

You sound like you're from landan!

Lots of travel happened again, hence lack of updates as I never prepare posts in time.  Over the weekend I was in Jersey (which all the adverts say is the hottest place in the British Isles.  I have yet to see any evidence of this, and have therefore deduced it is all lies. Lies I tell you, lies!) and then on Tuesday I went on a trip to London with Matt. 

We had a round about idea of what we were doing for the day.  I wanted to go to the Forbidden Planet megastore, as I had missed out going the last time I was in London, and on the way we finally found Denmark Street.  Bear in mind that Matt loves guitars and that this road is basically just guitar shops.  Expensive guitar shops.  He was in heaven.  Luckily for non-musical me there was a Foyles bookshop across the road.  I was basically like a kid in a candy shop, that place was HUGE!  Not to mention the vast selection, including books that I haven't been able to find anywhere else in the U.K, bar online.  I knew it was a sign, and who cares if I have plenty on my TBR list already, how could I pass up the chance to own/read Libba Bray's Beauty Queens and the Zombies VS. Unicorns anthology?   

Moving on, or after Matt dragged me away from the books and the Doctor Who merchandise, we found Forbidden Planet, after bypassing a massive tool shop, had a look round and I managed not to buy anything...just.  We then went to Fopp, to peruse their vinyl selection, before heading to lunch and then having a break in Hyde Park.  Or should I say Matt had a nap while I continued reading Mira Grant's Feed.  It was a lovely afternoon, but we weren't done yet.

The main reason for the trip was that last week I had won tickets from SFX to go to the Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter event at the IET, where they would be discussing their new book, The Long War. 

 

It was a really good event, even if answers to questions sometimes took such an indirect route that I was often left wondering what the original question was!  However, if you know me, that's my kind of answer!  Pratchett was full of wit, quantum bollocks is a rather good phrase, Baxter highlighted the process of how a single book by two authors whose styles are rather different, and Terry's assistant Rob was a great mediator.  Shame we never got to use the microphones for a group sing-a-long! 

 

I had a fantastic day, I'm more enthusiastic about reading The Long War and I really can't wait to go to another book event.  I just wish there were more local ones with authors whose books I have read so I'm not completely clueless as to what they are on about!

Whispers Underground

I was really impressed with Ben Aaronovitch's first book, Rivers of London, but not so much by the second offering, Moon Over Soho.  However, I was prepared to forgive a 'sophmore slump' and hoped that Whispers Under Ground would be a return to form.

It's December, and Peter Gant is investigating the death of a young American artist who was found at Baker Street tube station.  With Inspector Nightingale busy, the case leads Peter to into the hidden depths of the London Underground, with an FBI agent hot on his heels.  

As always, Aaronovitch's knowledge of London is impressive, as is the way he weaves said knowledge into the story seamlessly.  However, I didn't feel that much happened or engaged with Peter's investigation until the last hundred pages.  In some instances it felt that Aaronovitch was shunning the magic aspect of the series for a more conventional set up.  I had been told by another reader that more was revealed about the faceless man, but this was not the case.  Or at least not in a substantial way that would make me eager for the next instalment.  Perhaps when Aaronovitch has a plan for the series and knows where it will end the stories will improve and he will exploit their full potential.  Nonetheless, Whispers Under Ground is a very well written, witty and informative piece of fiction and well worth a read.